Those who assume Barry Zito is competing with Ryan Vogelsong for the fourth and final Division Series rotation spot might be giving Zito short shrift. He could be in the mix for one of the first three guaranteed games.

Zito restated his case during Thursday's regular-season home finale, a 7-3 victory against Arizona. In six innings, he allowed three runs that might have been prevented had Gregor Blanco been playing in left field.

Brandon Belt played there in a daytime postseason tryout for games in which Buster Posey plays first base. Belt did not look comfortable on the more difficult balls, giving manager Bruce Bochyhis answer.

"I'm glad he had those tough plays, to be honest," Bochy said.

The key was Chris Young's two-run single in the fourth, which fell in front of Belt. He seemed hesitant to overrun a ball that many regular left fielders would have caught.

Belt, asked if he feels more comfortable in left at night, said, "Yeah, probably, to be honest with you. The main point during the day is to find some good sunglasses so you can see the ball off the bat better."

Zito improved to 14-8. Moreover, the Giants won for the 10th consecutive Zito start, the first time in 20 years they have had that long a streak behind one starter (they won 11 straight Bill Swift starts in 1992). He heads into the postseason with a lot of confidence.

"I think it's a cliche," Zito said, "but it's just about having fun. When you're having fun, you enjoy baseball and you stay loose."

After months of playing poor to middling ball at home, the Giants went 8-2 on their final homestand against three weaker division opponents, which could provide a psychological boost heading into the postseason.

"It always helps," Posey said. "You'd much rather finish like that than 5-5 or whatever it might be. I've said all along, it's an advantage for us playing here with this crowd. It definitely helps to have a 10-game homestand like that."

Giants on deck

Friday

at Padres

7:05 p.m. CSNBA

Vogelsong (13-9) vs. Werner (2-2)

Saturday

at Padres

5:35 p.m. Channel: 11

Bumgarner (16-10) vs. Stults (7-3)

Sundayat Padres

1:05 p.m. CSNBA

TBA vs. Volquez (11-11)

Leading off

Big crowds: The Giants drew 3,377,371 fans at AT&T Park in 2012, about 10,000 short of the record they set last season. They have surpassed 3 million in 11 of 13 seasons at China Basin.